The present invention relates to an apparatus and also to a method for sealing or substantially closing a flexible tubular conduit from within the conduit. The apparatus and the method have been devised particularly for use in the sealing or substantial closing of a body conduit of an animal. In the preferred application of the invention the apparatus and method are applied to the sealing or substantial closing of the anus of a sheep carcass. The invention will be described with reference to this preferred application. However, the invention can be applied to the sealing or substantial closing of other types of flexible tubular conduit, for example, sufficiently flexible plastics tubes.
In the past, the processing of freshly slaughtered sheep in freezing works involved the hanging of the sheep by their hind legs. This meant that the sheep were hung upside down with the anus of each sheep facing upwardly. The trend in freezing works today is to hang the carcasses by the forelegs which means that the anus of each carcass faces downwardly. This is known as the Annan inverted dressing system. This new system of dressing sheep carcasses is claimed to be faster and less labour intensive than the old system. However, a problem with the new system is that faeces can discharge from the carcasses and soil these. Soiled areas of the carcasses have to be cut away and each soiled carcass is downgraded resulting in a lower financial return. It was with this particular problem in mind that the present invention was devised.